1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the large-scale installation of home automation packages, communicating not only with one another in an internal network, but also with a central platform hosted by an Internet server.
The present invention applies notably, although not exclusively, to the deployment of a system for the real-time measurement and modulation of the power consumption of a plurality of electrical devices.
2. Description of Related Art
The Applicant has developed a measurement and modulation system of this type, the principle of which is described notably in the document WO2008/017754, and the main elements of which are shown schematically in FIG. 1. This measurement system comprises at least one modulator package 1 to which a plurality of electrical devices 2 (such as water heaters, electric radiators, air conditioning units, etc.) can be connected individually or in series on current loops. The modulator package 1 is suitable for measuring in real time the voltages and currents consumed by these electrical devices 2, and for sending the measurements periodically, for example every ten minutes, to an external platform 3 hosted by an Internet server. This periodic sending of the measurements is carried out via a wireless communication modem 4 integrated into a driver package 5 of the system, the wireless communication modem 4 enabling a packet-telephony connection 6, such as GPRS, 3G or 4G, to be set up to the Internet platform 3. Alternatively, the connection so the Internet network can be set up via an Ethernet link. The driver package 5 is preferably separate from the modulator package 1 and connected to the latter via a wired link 7, preferably via power line communication or PLC. To do this, each of the modulator packages 1 and driver packages 5 is equipped with a PLC modem (not shown). The driver package 5 can thus be connected to a plurality of modulator packages 1 of which it collects the measurements to send them to the external platform 3. The driver package 5 advantageously comprises a USB port (not shown), which allows the connection of additional modules such as short-range radio modems or temperature sensors. Thus, it can also be provided that the transmission of the measurements from the modulator packages 1 is carried out via this radio frequency channel. The measurements received by the external platform 3 are stored and can be visualized at any time and from any location by the user, who can connect to his user space on the Internet by any known means. The platform 3 is furthermore capable of sending commands to the driver package 5 via the wireless packet-telephony connection 6 to control the interruption of the power supply of all or some of the electrical devices 2 connected to the different modulator packages 1 during a predetermined period. The periods of interruption are generally less than half an hour, so that the users affected by the disconnections of all or some of their electrical devices, such as heaters or air conditioning units, do not suffer any inconvenience. The power supply is controlled via the modulator packages 1. By means of this system, and apart from the possibility of monitoring the consumption by each user, a large quantity of modulator packages 1 and driver packages 5 can be managed simultaneously in the centralized platform 3, and the electric power consumed by a set of users can easily be modulated, on a municipal, departmental, regional or national scale, in particular during consumption peaks, without the need for the electric power suppliers to produce more electricity.
The installation of a home automation network, such as the modulator and driver packages previously described, in the home of a user, comprises a plurality of phases which are highly dependent on the installation environment:
It is first of all necessary to know some information specific to the user, such as his installation type (number of installed modulator packages and driver packages, pairing of the different packages and electrical equipment, Internet connection type, etc.), his contact details, his electricity tariff, or the type of dwelling. These data are traditionally collected by an engineer in situ during the installation, on paper or tablet computer, so that they can then be entered manually by an operator into the system database. This results in delays, often of several days, in the input of the data into the database, as well as high risks of entering incomplete or incorrect data, the risks being increased due to the double entry of the information.
Furthermore, since the connection of the driver packages to the external Internet network can be set up via ADSL, or preferably via a mobile link (GPRS/3G), it is necessary, in this latter case, to test the connections offered by all existing mobile operators in order to choose the connection that provides the best conditions in terms of reception, speed, and possibly costs. Only when the mobile operator has been chosen can the driver packages be equipped with the SIM card corresponding to this mobile operator. Today, this test is laborious to carry out since the driver packages can only be equipped with a single SIM card for reasons of size and cost.
Furthermore, it is necessary to define very precisely the type and characteristics of the electrical devices connected to each channel of the modulator package(s), no connect, if necessary, the modulator packages to the best driver package when it is intended to install a plurality of them, to test the complete installation, and also each device that makes up the system, and to manage the faults of some devices (above all the relay devices), or the impact of the de-installation of these devices. None of the preceding tests carried out today in an automatic manner, and the correct performance of the different tests by the installing engineer is not guaranteed. A complete and reliable installation procedure may also take several days, and may require several site visits by the installing engineer.
The result of this is a procedure which may prove costly in most cases.